Going to the Chapel

Mirador de Cristal - 2 Volcanoes: Popo & Izta

Looking through the glass floor

Sunday – Saturday 24/12/23 – 13/01/24 (3 Weeks) 

Sick in bed

It has been a long while since I updated the blog. Shortly after an uneventful Christmas, I got sick with the flu and it has taken 2½ weeks for me to feel well again. For the first few days of the new year, I was pretty much feverish, weak and unable to eat much. I stayed in bed or sat wrapped up on the couch for those days. Martha, the facilitator, offered to go to the store and get me some medicine, and I asked her to get some Tylenol, Dayquil and Nyquil. She wasn’t able to get the Dayquil and Nyquil, so she got me some daytime and some nighttime TheraFlu, and some Paracetemol, which is México’s answer to Tylenol and restricted. After a few days of that, I was able to start eating again, but I lost 8 pounds in a little over a week (I’ve gained it back, since.).

 I was starting to feel a little better last weekend, though I was still lightheaded, but I was able to concentrate enough to start studying Spanish again, and I was able to walk to the grocery store and back. Life is getting back to normal again, and boy, am I glad.

 Back up the Hill

I wanted to test myself and see if my body had recovered. While I was sick, I hardly did any walking, although I made a lot of trips up and down stairs. Today, I decided to try to walk to the top of the Cerro de San Miguel again. The top of the hill is about 2 miles from my front door so it is a good long hike, including a lot of steep stairs. On my first foray to the top, I had avoided the steep stairs and took the less strenuous but longer route around the hill. Today, I decided to take the stairs at every opportunity. The last of the stairs, from the Glass Lookout to the chapel at the top, are very steep, with a lot of twists and turns. I made my way up them very slowly, with my stick in my left hand and my right hand on the rail. When I got to the top, I ran into my neighbors, Tony and Shirley, who were just coming down. It had taken me about an hour to reach the summit today; the first time, it took me 2 hours.

La Capilla de San Miguel doorway

Inside the Chapel of St. Michael

I was surprised to find the chapel open, so I went inside and took a couple of pictures. After I had rested for 10 minutes or so, I started down. I know from past experience that the walk down is hard on my legs. By the time I reached the bottom, my legs were a bit rubbery but I felt okay. I decided to go to the Zocalo (town square) rather than walk home. I had two reasons for this decision. One is because it was a nice day and the Zocalo is nice park to sit and rest and do a little people watching. The other reason is that the walk to my house was uphill, and the walk to el centro was downhill. After I rested for a while in the park, I walked a couple of blocks and caught the combi bus home, where I drank a ton of water and had a breakfast of cereal, toast and a banana.

 Immigration

Last Tuesday, I went with Martha to the INM (immigration) to change my address. You are allowed 90 days to file your change of address when you move, and the penalties are severe; over $1,000 US. Martha had helped me fill out the form online and I had all of my documentation in order. In order to get a good spot in line, we left Atlixco at 6:30 AM for the half hour drive to the INM in Puebla City. We were 5^th in line when the door opened at 9:00 AM, and I was done at 11:30; this is the pace of dealing with government entities in México. It is like dealing with the DMV in Minnesota, except that you are treated with a bit of respect in México, as opposed to the disdain that the Minnesota DMV employees dish out. So, I ended up taking Tuesday off of work and spent the rest of the day studying Spanish and reading.

 Beautiful Weather

The weather has been amazingly beautiful for the last week, getting up in the mid to high 70s. I was able to spend several hours a day on my roof, studying, reading and talking to the dogs on the roof across from me. They love to spend 2 or 3 minutes barking when I get on the roof, but they settle down after that. Then, I put my table in the shade and relax with the great volcano, Popocatépetl in the background. I don’t think that I will ever get tired of staring at it and meditating. If I stoop a little bit and look between some palm fronds and a rooftop, I can also see Iztaccihuatl, the smaller volcano, but the star of the show is Popo. I still can’t believe my good fortune in finding this affordable house with the rooftop view.

Up On The Roof

And that’s about all the news that’s fit to blog.

Hasta luego.